Toy carrousel



Oct. 18, 1966 w. M. LAKlN 3,279,793

TOY CARROUSEL Filed Dec. 14, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Oct. 18, 1966 w. M. LAKlN 3,279,793

TOY CARROUSEL Filed Dec. 14, 1964 V 5 Sheets-$heet 2 w 4 "mun Oct. 18, 1966 w. M. LAKIN 3,279,793

TOY CARROUSEL Filed Dec. 14, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

United States Patent 3,279,793 TOY CARROUSEL Willis M. Lakin, Barton, Wis., assignor to Marlin Toy Products, Inc., Horicon, Wis., a corporation of Illinois Filed Dec. 14, 1964, Ser. No. 418,075 9 Claims. (Cl. 272-31) This invention pertains to improvements in toy carrousels and like sound and action devices, and has for its principal objects the provision in such a device of individually actuated moving figures carried by a rotating structure all driven by power derived from a small music box of the spring-wound motor variety, some of the salient features of novelty and utility relating to the method and means disclosed for deriving the driving power from the bull gear of the spring motor; and the means for utilizing and applying such power in effecting movement of the carrousel and the several figures carried thereby; and to details of the construction, interfitted assembly, and mode of operation of the driving and driven components of the device,'as will more fully appear.

More specific features relate to the provision of a special thief gear means drivingly associated with the bull gear of the usual music box mechanism; to the mounting of the thief gear concentrically with the wind-up spindle of a known type of music box motor and a winding stem coupling with said spindle and terminating in a winding knob disposed as a dome piece over a transparent enclosure for the carrousel; to the means for drivingly intercoupling a housing forming part of the carrousel structure to the special thief gear means driven by the bull gear and for totally supporting the said housing structure on the said gear; to the method and means for drivingly connecting individual movable figurine carriers for movement 'with the carrousel housing; and to the means for imparting uniformly cadenced movement to each figurine carrier as a function of the rotation of the carrousel housing in synchrony with the musical rendition afforded by the tone or program drum of the music box and its associated bull gear but at a faster rate than that of the drum.

Still further features relate to the method and means for seating the thief gear in a well formed in the frame casting of the music box to surround the winding spindle for the motor spring at :a position adjacent the tone drum and its bull gear, the thief gear having a flange with rides on the rim of the well to stabilize the load of the carrousel which this gear carries and also to prevent jamming of the gear teeth and damage due to dropping of the toy on the winding knob.

The foregoing and other objects and aspects of novelty and utility inherent in the invention will be understood more particularly as the following description proceeds in view of the annexed drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the novel toy carrousel;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical section of the same;

FIGURE 3 is an exploded perspective view of certain structural and assembly details of the device;

FIGURE 4 is a bottom plan detail of the power takeoff thief gear as seen along lines 44 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a plan view looking down upon the music box mechanism with portions of the floor of the base shell shown fragmentally;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmental plan detail of the hub structure and fulcrum assembly for the carrier arms as viewed along lines 66 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 7 is a sectional detail through the music box motor as it would be seen along lines 77 of FIGURE 5 and showing especially the disposition of the power takeoff thief gear and the bull gear;

FIGURE 8 is a plan view of the underside of the carrousel housing and its attachment to the thief gear, as viewed in the direction of lines 8-8 on FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 9 is a partial vertical sectional detail to enlarged scale through parts of the winding knob, stern, and the coupling thereof to the spring spindle, viewed in the same direction as the section of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 9A is a plan view looking down upon the dome shell of the carrousel, shown by itself.

The improvements in a motion and sound toy have been embodied in a carrousel such as depicted in FIGURES land 2, wherein an approximately annular dished-bottom shell comprises a base section It which is preferably molded from an opaque plastic material, said base being surmounted by an upper transparent dome portion 11 of hemispherical form and likewise molded of a suitable non-shatterable plastic.

The transparent dome 11 is surmounted by a winding knob 28. Within the transparent dome piece is the carrousel including a canopy 31, the carousel itself defined by a series of polyhedrally arranged walls 30A and a series of ponies 33 rotatable with the carrousel and having individual up and down motion.

The base is formed with a central planar floor portion 10A surrounded by a downwardly slopingskirt portion 10B forming a recess 10C on the underside thereof to afford a sounding board which will be spaced above any supporting surface by integral legs 10D which depend from the central section and are partially, shielded by the sloped skirt portions. Air holes 10E are provided in the floor portion for relief of the vibrating air column within the shell, the dome shell having a lower margin 11A which seats in a circumambient ledge 10F formed behind a rim portion 10G of the base casting, which is provided with decorative scallops, as seen in FIGURE 1, the dome (FIGURE 2 also) being provided with several horizontally-projecting scallop-shaped integral tabs 11B each formed to register within one of the scallops on the base for attachment to the latter by means of rivets 12, whereby the dome is very securely attached to the base.

As seen in FIGURES 2, 3 and 5, an upstanding annular wall 14 rises from the floor of the base, the upper edge of this wall being formed sinuously to define a continuous series of cam undulations 16 providing alternately slow rise and rapid descent gradients 16A and 16B, respectively, the rising gradient at 16A for example being about 30 while the descending gradient at 16B may be about 40, for reasons to appear. 7

Within the circumambient confines of the undulating annular wall 14 is a sounding mechanism in the form of a music box 18 including the usual set of tone reeds 18A cooperable with a tone programming drum 18B rotatable about a shaft 18C to sound the reeds in accordance with the melody set upon the drum responsive to slow rotation of said drum in the well-known manner. The sounding mechanism or music box is provided with a motor, the spring wind-up variety being employed in the illustrative embodiment, the details of the usual train of driving gears in such motors being well-known and therefore not described at length except in relation to certain features of novelty pertaining to the method and means by which driving power, at a desired change-speed ratio, is stolen from the large drum or bull gear usually employed in such devices and serving in the present disclosures both to actuate and to support certain motion components of the toy.

The usual wind-up clock spring (not seen) is enclosed in a small cylindrical drum 20, FIGURE 2, and will impart rotative effort to a spring drive gear 21 (FIGURE 5, also), thereby driving a small pinion 23 fast on the tone drum shaft 18C. Also fast on shaft 18C is a bull spur gear 24, FIGURE 5, which drives the usual speedregulating gear train and governor means including, for

instance, a pinion and gear means 25 and governor vane 25A, it being important to observe in FIGURE 5 that the motor means includes a frame casting 18D having formed in one face thereof an annular well 18X comprising a seat for the special power take-off thief gear 26 having driving connection with the round-about or carrousel, as will more fully appear.

Disposed concentrically of the gear well 18X is the projecting end portion of a winding spindle 18$ for the usual motor spring, the upper extremity of the spindle being threaded for removable coupling with the reduced lower end of a long winding rod 27, FIGURE 2, extending vertically through an opening in the dome shell 11 and thence into fixed connection with a decorative windingknob 28 surmounting the dome. By turning the knob 28, the motor spring will be wound, and as is usual in such spring motors, the spring spindle 188 will also turn with the gradual unwinding of the spring at a very slow rate, the music-box motor in the illustrative form of this device having an effective running time of about 2 minutes per winding, during which the tone or program drum 18B turns very slowly owing to the action of the associated governor gear means 25, 25A, etc., alluded to.

Means for deriving a driving effort from the motor in a multiplied but harmonic relationship to the rate of rotation of the tone drum, and therefore in a timed relationship to the melody produced by the program drum in coacting with the tone reeds, comprises use of a theif gear in the form of the crown gear 26, FIGURES 2, 3, 4 and 7, which desirably will be molded from plastic material and have an annular cap or top web portion 26A extending beyond the gear teeth to define a riding flange 26B, together with an upstanding concentric coupling stud 29 of polyhedral configuration having angularly disposed side faces 29A in hexagonal array, and a central bore 29B into which the winding-spring spindle 188 projects for threaded engagement with a stub 21' and the coupling engagement with the rod 27, said bore being substantially oversize so that the rod and spindle may turn wholly free of the thief gear.

The crown of the thief gear 26 in which the gear teeth are formed is of a diameter to fit freely into the relieved frame seat or well 18X of the motor frame, as in FIG- URES 2 and 7, and when so-disposed, said gear teeth will mesh with the teeth of the bull gear 24, which is fast on the drum shaft 18C. The riding flange 26B of the crown gear rests on the peripheral surfaces of the casting around the rim of the well and limits the meshing of the crown gear teeth with the teeth of the bull gear to prevent jamming and also to prevent damage when the toy is dropped on the winding knob.

As viewed in FIGURE 1, the carrousel proper comprises a hexagonally sided housing 30 surmounted by a decorative canopy 31, each of the sides 30A of this poly- 'hedral housing having a vertical slot 30B through which projects a vertically oscillable carrier rod 32 at the end of which is a figurine having the configuration of a pony 33. The carrousel housing is mounted for rotation with the special thief gear 26 by means of a hollow central post 30C, depending as an integral part of the top web 30D of the molded housing shell, as in FIGURES 2 and 3.

At the foot of said hollow housing post is a cross web 30E from the underside of which depends an integral polyhedral coupling skirt 30F having the same hexagonal socket configuration as the coupling stud 29A on the thief gear, whereby the hollow post and hence the carrousel housing itself is drivingly coupled to this crowntype thief gear.

Also formed as an integral part of the housing post is an outer skirt or wall 30G which surrounds the hexagonal coupling bore or skirt, FIGURES 2 and 3, said outer skirt having a series of short vertical slots 30H through each of which projects one of the figure-carrying rods or arms 32.

Each carrier rod 32 at its inner end is provided with a lateral pivot bar or protuberance 34, FIGURES 2, 3 and 6, and there is sufficient space provided between the inner coupling skirt 30F and the outer post skirt or wall 30G to form an annular chamber to accommodate the array of pivot bars on all of the carrier rods, as in FIGURE 6, it being apparent from FIGURE 2 that each of said bars is loosely captured between the two skirt portions, the bottom post web and the top web or plate of the special thief gear which closes said chamber, these pivot portions being sufficiently free to move and serve as the fulcrum for the respective carrier rods, which will move up and down in response to rotation of the main housing assembly with respect to the stationary undulatory cam wall structure 1416, as will now appear.

Since the sinuous cam formations 16A 16B on the annular cam wall 16 are disposed radially of the rotative axis of the thief gear 26, and the several figurine carrying rod 32 are projected radially of the same axis, said rods or arms 32 will be travelled over the undulating cam track and will rise and fall at a varying rate, relatively slow on the rise and fast on the descent, the angular gradients being selected to simulate the cadence of the ponies galloping in synchrony with appropriately selected sound effects produced by the music box, it being observed that, apart from selection of any specified type of melody or sound effect, for example, there will necessarily be a fixed relationship between the harmonic motion of the figures (or the carriers thereof) and the sounding of the reeds, since the program drum must always move in synchronism with the bull gear 24 and special thief gear 26, even through the gear ratios may be difierent, as in the disclosed toy in which the movement of the ponies 33 and the carrousel housing is faster by a ratio of about 2 /2 to 1 than the speed of the tone drum, which is made possible because of the independence of the gear 26 from the usual train of music box gears.

An annular floor or platform plate 19 of decoratively imprinted cardboard or like material i afiixed to plastic protuberances 3UP molded to project integrally from the lower corner junctions of the several side wall panels 30A, these protuberances amounting to studs which are headed over by application of heat sufficient to plasticize them for flattening against the underside of the cardboard annulus to retain the latter, somewhat in the manner of rivets as at 30H in FIGURE 8. As seen in the last-mentioned view, and also in FIGURE 6, a similar method retains the thief gear in assembly with the socket formation 30F at the foot of the central post structure of the carrousel, namely, three small plastic pins or studs 30S molded as integral projection from the bottom of the polygonal coupling socket at this part of the post, and through corresponding holes 26H in the thief gear to be heat-headed at their ends at 305 in FIGURE 6.

The component parts of the carrousel structure, as such, and apart from the music box or other sources of combined sound effects and driving power, may all be fabricated by molding from inexpensive, lightweight, noninjurious, relatively soft plastic materials, and these parts are so formed and contrived as to require, for the most part, merely interfitting for joinder into cooperative assembly, it being noted particularly that the important thief gear merely seats in the well 18X and couples with the carrousel housing shell by interfit of the hexagonal stud and socket formations 29 and 30F, the rocker bars 34 for the carrier rods 32 being captured by this same assembly. The canopy 31 may have a slight forced interfit with the top of the carrousel housing 30 and be cemented to the latter as Well.

The motor and coupling of the carrousel structure thereto, and more specifically the coupling of the central post structure 30C with the crown gear 26, is protected against damage from droppage of a sort which would impart a blow to the winding knob acting in the direction of the axis of the winding stem, by the winding stem coupling means depicted in FIGURES 9 and 9A, according to which the knob 28 is permanently attached to the winding stem 27, these parts optionally being fabricated by molding in one piece or as separate pieces cemented together. In either case, the stem is provided with a reduced portion 27R a short distance beneath its juncture with the knob so as to define a shoulder 278 which will capture the stem in an opening 11H in the dome shell (FIGURE 9A), the material around this opening being provided with a number of radial slits 118 which permit suificient yielding of this material to admit the lower portions of the winding stern, which are of larger diameter and preferably have a taper to facilitate entry until the shoulder 278 is passed, whereupon the stem becomes substantially permanently locked in the dome opening yet is wholly free to rotate.

The lower end of the plastic winding rod or stem 27 is provided with a polyhedral (hexagonal) socket 27H of considerable depth, FIGURE 9, which interfits with a complementary coupling-head configuration 22 on a short metal winding key 21, the lower end of which is bored and tapped to engage the threaded end of the motor winding spindle 185.

Between the hexagonal coupling head 22 and the lower threaded end of the winding key, the diameter of the shank of the key is reduced to accommodate the compression spring 35 which exerts an effort against the thief gear to maintain the latter yieldingly in engagement with the bull gear and also to keep the riding flange 2613 normally against the motor frame to stabilize the gear and its support of the carrousel structure. The length of the hexagonal bore 27H interiorly of the winding stem is suflicient to permit the latter to be driven axially a considerable distance down upon the hexagonal coupling head 22 on the key piece, in case an inward blow is imparted to the knob as previously mentioned. This safeguard is particularly important for the reason that the dome will usually be molded from a flexible or only partially rigid acetate plastic material which will not shatter, in consequence of which the dome can be distorted somewhat, as by a blow against the knob suggested above, and in the absence of the shock relief afforded by the foregoing winding stem structure and coupling means, damage could be effected upon the motor, thief gear or winding means.

The base shell preferably will have somewhat more rigidity than the dome, but nevertheless will likewise be of non-shatterable character afforded by a plastic material of the nature of the polyethylene plastics; the somewhat harder composition of this shell affording a much more resonant sounding-board action for the music box, as well as a firmer pedestal for the assemblage, with good wearing and bearing qualities for the undulating cam track surrounding the motor.

I claim:

1. In a toy carrousel, the combination with a spring motor having a frame with an opening, a power spring, a spring-winding spindle exposed adjacent said opening, together with a sound programming drum and bull gear rotated in step by said motor, said bull gear having teeth exposed at said opening, of means for deriving power from said motor comprising the provision of an annular seat in said frame about said spindle; a thief gear carried by said motor in said seat to rotate concentrically about but free of said spring-Winding spindle and meshing with the exposed teeth of said bull gear; a long winding rod extending coaxially of, and coupling with said springwinding spindle and manually rotatable to wind said power spring from said spindle; and a carrousel structure rotatable about the axis of said spindle and rod concentrically with said thief gear and having its total support upon said thief gear, together with means on the thief gear and on the supported part of the carrousel structure thereon drivingly intercoupling the same.

2. In a round-about toy, a rotated body member including a central post portion containing the axis of rotation for said member, said post portion having at one axial end a polyhedral socket concentric with said axis, said post portion having an outer wall circumambient of said socket and defining with the latter an annular chamber open at the bottom margin of the post portion, said outer wall having slots spaced thereabout and each opening into said bottom margin, and gear means adapted for driving engagement with a driving mechanism for rotating the body member, said gear means comprising a gear member having a polyhedral stud interfitting with said polyhedral socket on the post portion, together with portions circumambient of said stud closing the said open part of the annular chamber when said stud is interfitted with said socket, said gear member having formed on the side thereof opposite from said stud a circumferential series of gear teeth; and rod-like motion members projecting radially into the respective wall slots in said post portion and each having a fulcrum protuberance captured in said annular post chamber by the gear member interfitted with the post as aforesaid.

3. In a musical action toy, a music box having a frame casting supporting a motor mechanism including a gear system for rotating a programmed tone-sounding drum cooperable with tone reeds; said frame having formed in a particular side thereof a cavity constituting a seat for a thief gear, said cavity having a bottom floor with surrouning sidewall portions, said gear system and drum being disposed on an opposite side of the frame from said particular side and said seat, said gear system including a bull gear with radially-extensive teeth rotating in a plane at substantially right angles to a plane through said seat floor and said gear teeth travelling through an are substantially at the level of said floor and in close proximity to a particular part of the sidewall portions of said seat, the sidewall portion of said seat being interrupted at said particular part in juxtaposition with the travelling arc of the bull gear teeth aforesaid; said motor including an energizing spindle projecting outwardly of said frame centrally through said seat floor normally to the latter; and a thief gear glidingly disposed to rotate in said seat concentrically of said spindle and having an axial passage therethrough freely circumambient of said spindle for rotation independently of the latter, said thief gear having at one axial side thereof gear teeth projecting toward said seat floor and travelling through an arc beyond said sidewall interruption to mesh with said bull gear teeth juxtaposed thereat, said thief gear further having at the opposite axial side thereof concentrically located means for intercoupling with a driven action instrumentality.

4. In a carrousel type musical toy, in combination with a known type of music box having a one-piece frame casting supporting a spring motor assembled on one particular side thereof with a springwindup spindle projecting outwardly from an opposite side, a tone drum rotated by said motor, and a bull gear forming part of a gear system for rotating said drum; a carrousel structure and means for supporting and driving the same by power stolen from said motor and comprising the provision in said opposite side of the frame of a well having a bottom floor extending about said spindle in a plane substantially normal thereto with the spindle projecting substantially beyond the well, said well having sidewall portions with an interruption overlying teeth of said bull gear; a thief gear glidingly supported to rotate in said well with an axial passage freely passing said spindle therethrough for rotation independently one with respect to the other, said thief gear having teeth extending in parallelism with its axis of rotation on that side thereof confronting said floor and meshing with bull gear teeth through said sidewall interruption, said thief gear further having on an opposite side thereof means in driving engagement with said carrousel structure.

5. The combination of claim 4 wherein said thief gear has a circumarnbient gliding flange adjoining said opposite side thereof and disposed to ride upon surface portions of said frame disposed about the mouth of said well.

6. The combination of claim 4 wherein said carrousel structure has a hub portion containing the axis of IO- tation thereof and said hub portion has at one axial end region thereof a coupling formation cooperable with said driving engagement means on the thief gear for drivingly interconnecting the thief gear and carrousel structure.

7. A construction according to claim 6 IWhCI'filH said interconnection of the thief gear and carrousel structure constitute a support for the carrousel structure.

8. A construction according to claim 7 wherein there is further provided a shaft member removably attaching to said spindle in axial alignment therewith and extending through said hub portions of the carrousel structure along the rotative axis thereof with the carrousel structure freely rotatable thereabout, said rod member being rotatable independently of the carrousel structure for winding said spring motor.

,9. The construction of claim 6 wherein said hub por- 25 tion defines an open well circumambient of the axis of rotation and opening in confrontation with said opposite side of the thief gear and closed by the latter when in assembled relation therewith as aforesaid, said hub portion having openings therethrough with an action member projecting therethrough radially outward of the hub portion, said action member having an enlarged end portion captured in said well by the presence of said thief gear in interconnecting relationship with the carrousel structure as aforesaid.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,715 ,5 30 8/ 1955 Olsen 27231 X 2,792,224 5/ 1957 White 272-31 X 2,846,222 8/ 1958 Handler 272-31 F OREIGN PATENTS 1,318,712 1/1962 France.

References Cited by the Applicant UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,5 69,922 10/ 1951 Centofanti. 2,840,949 7/ 1958 Faulkner. 2,846,223 8/1958 Nelson.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner.

A. W. KRAMER, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A TOY CARROUSEL, THE COMBINATION WITH A SPRING MOTOR HAVING A FRAME WITH AN OPENING, A POWER SPRING, A SPRING-WINDING SPINDLE EXPOSED ADJACENT SAID OPENING, TOGETHER WITH A SOUND PROGRAMMING DRUM AND BULL GEAR ROTATED IN STEP BY SAID MOTOR, SAID BULL GEAR HAVING TEETH EXPOSED AT SAID OPENING, OF MEANS FOR DERIVING POWER FROM SAID MOTOR COMPRISING THE PROVISION OF AN ANNULAR SEAT IN SAID FRAME ABOUT SAID SPINDLE; A THIEF GEAR CARRIED BY SAID MOTOR IN SAID TO ROTATE CONCENTRICALLY ABOUT BUT FREE OF SAID SPRING-WINDING SPINDLE AND MESHING WITH THE EXPOSED TEETH OF SAID BULL GEAR; A LONG WINDING ROD EXTENDING COAXIALLY OF, AND COUPLING WITH SAID SPRINGWINDING SPINDLE AND MANUALLY ROTATABLE TO WIND SAID POWER SPRING FROM SAID SPINDLE; AND A CARROUSEL STRUCTURE ROTATABLE ABOUT THE AXIS OF SAID SPINDLE AND ROD CONCENTRICALLY WITH SAID THIEF GEAR AND HAVING ITS TOTAL SUPPORT UPON SAID THIEF GEAR, TOGETHER WITH MEANS ON THE THIEF GEAR AND ON THE SUPPORTED PART OF THE CARROUSEL STRUCTURE THEREON DRIVINGLY INTERCOUPLING THE SAME.
 2. IN A ROUND-ABOUT TOY, A ROTATED BODY MEMBER INCLUDING A CENTRAL POST PORTION CONTAINING THE AXIS OF ROTATION FOR SAID MEMBER, SAID POST PORTION HAVING AT ONE AXIAL 